Virgil Reality: Information and Requirements Architect, Online Consultancy.
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Your Requirements
The simple requirements and build process
Your requirements and build follow some simple stages:
Phase 1 – Needs Analysis
We can define who the stakeholders are on your project. We’ll interactively find and clarify what the business needs are for the project and how the resulting online site is to operate.
We’ll discuss how has this been done previously?
We’ll turn this information into a requirements document that is the testable set of instructions for the development team to build the required site for today and as you grow into the future.
The process is inexpensive and it saves you money against the cost of getting it wrong or out of control in development.
Working with developers?
Your chosen developer (including myself) will build exactly what you tell them to build. We need to tell the developer exactly what you want to ensure this happens.
If the developer doesn’t build what you want you have the documentation to fall back on to show that the feature/functionality was required and agreed upon.
Changing Scope: Sometimes during a development you (or your developer) will come up with something that changes the scope of the development. In this instance you need to document the change, discuss it openly and look at how this may change the timing or budget of your project.
All features should have an obvious business purpose.
What is important?
Can you prioritise features based on their importance, cost and complexity?
You want your site facing your users, though what about the part of the site that faces your internal staff or suppliers (such as an Ad Agency or Copy Writer or just yourself). How is it all managed?
Do you need to add, edit or delete registered users? What about help or credit card clearing or eNewsletters or the update of content or database collection?
Normally, such “back-end” functions on a website contribute to about 50% or more of the total value of
the website.
Phase 2 – Site Documentation
Using the requirements
Having prioritised features based on their importance, cost and complexity, we then produce:
Business Requirements: Create documentation and consensus around how the product is supposed to work and provide a blueprint for developers to build the product. Explain the business outcomes
and reasons as they relate to the online site.
Functional Specification: Define how the site/application is actually going to function and add this information to the requirements. Who uses it? What do they do?
Technical Specification: What browsers does it cover? Is it mobile? Where is it hosted? Does it have to be compliant to accept credit cards?
Phase 3 – Development Implementation
Implementation: is the following of the requirements plan by the development team to build the system. You use it in the first instance to get your quotes and find the developer that suits you. This may be a 3rd party, your agency team or I can build it for you and I will give you a fixed quote based on the requirements.
Phase 4 – The Build
Whether you choose an internal build, an external team, I can use the requirements documentation to oversee the build to ensure the integrity of the build in line with the requirements or I can build the site for you.
Part of the build is your content development and the implementation of your corporate livery and the site graphic design. Your documentation will have full wireframe architecture so that your site functions can be properly implemented in the design and your site will fulfil the goals set in your business planning. We can would also document the sources of content, how they can be implemented in the site and you would be able to determine if a copy writer is required for the site.
Phase 5 – Testing
Testing: Ticking off the final system against the requirements plan ensuring all features have been implemented and work as expected. A test plan can be developed from the requirements.
Phase 6 – Final Documentation
Documentation: Before, during and after continue to record everything into the requirements documentation so that you have complete control of the project and the business can add to, adjust or recycle the product if required. This is your online site manual and will be delivered in conjunction with the “How to” documentation.
The good news
- Save time and money by good planning.
- Test your ideas and architecture before any money is spent on a designer or web developer.
- Answer your questions about your project at a much lower cost than if you bring them up during development.
- Use the low commitment of requirements to ensure your longer term success.
The easiest way to find out more is to ring me on 0405 129 049
or contact me by email here.
Please read the next section "Can you build it for us?" Click Here
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